This paper describes a methodology for modelling light pollution using geographical information systems (GIS) and remote sensing (RS) technology. The proposed approach attempts to address the issue of environmental assessment in sensitive suburban areas. The modern way of life in developing countries is conductive to environmental degradation in urban and suburban areas. One specific parameter for this degradation is light pollution due to intense artificial night lighting. This paper aims to assess this parameter for the Athens metropolitan area, using modern analytical and data capturing technologies. For this purpose, night-time satellite images and analogue maps have been used in order to create the spatial database of the GIS for the study area. Using GIS advanced analytical functionality, visibility analysis was implemented. The outputs for this analysis are a series of maps reflecting direct and indirect light pollution around the city of Athens. Direct light pollution corresponds to optical contact with artificial night light sources, while indirect light pollution corresponds to optical contact with the sky glow above the city. Additionally, the assessment of light pollution in different periods allows for dynamic evaluation of the phenomenon. The case study demonstrates high levels of light pollution in Athens suburban areas and its increase over the last decade.

Given geography’s neglect of illuminated and dark space, this paper explores the various qualities of darkness that have contributed to the experience of the city. In recent history, darkness has been conceptualised negatively, for instance, with the ‘dark side’ and the ‘forces of darkness’ conceived as the opposite of that which enlightens and illuminates. Perhaps such metaphors testify to earlier urban conditions in which perils of all sorts lurked in the nocturnal city and doors were closed when darkness fell. Yet modern illumination has transformed nocturnal urban experience, producing cityscapes of regulation, hierarchical selectiveness, consumption, fantasy and imagination. However, this article suggests that the more positive qualities of darkness have been overlooked: the potential for conviviality and intimacy to be fostered in the dark, the aesthetics and atmospherics of darkness and shadow, the possibilities for apprehending the world through other senses and the dismissal of the star-saturated sky.